Unavoidable
by PinkS7orm
Summary: Shikamaru and Temari, a Shikamaru takes over the head of his clan, he is forced to marry. Sorry, bad summary, good story though!
1. Chapter 1

Unavoidable.

By StineyTaicho

***my fanfic works under the assumption that Temari and Shikamaru both survive the war.

The war was over. Done. The Bijuu defeated. But now came harder work. Dealing with the losses and rebuilding the village. The end of the war hit the Leaf Village harder than most. After the battle from Pein, the village was nowhere near back on its feet before the war started. And now, after suffering heavy losses, it was time to rebuild.

Shikamaru stood in front of Tsunades desk. He was absent mindedly watching the clouds float past out of the window behind her desk. He was wondering why he had been called to Lady Tusnades office so soon. The war has only been over for a few weeks, the Leaf had only managed to organise a memorial service for the losses (including his Father) for the night before. Immediately after that, an ANBU ninja had appeared in his room while he studied his father's scrolls, informing him of the early morning request from the Hokage.

"As the new Head of the Naara Clan, the council requests a meeting with you. As you are aware, you're Father dealt with the council frequently, and they have matters that they wish to discuss with you." Lady Tusnade looked at him with piercing brown eyes, as if she had expected him to react differently to normal. She studied the young man standing in front of her. Losing Inoichi had sent Ino into a depression, but it seemed as though Shikamaru barely even registered the loss. He did look older, more resilient, more like Shikaku.

"I wondered how long it would take them to see me." He said without taking his eyes off the clouds. "What a drag, but I guess it can't be avoided. When do I see them?"

"The meeting is now, you can come with me." She stood up and walked around the desk, and stood face to face with the young shinobi. "I should warn you though, you may not be overly happy with the matters up for discussion." Tsunade stopped for a second as though she was about to say something else, but without another word she continued towards the door as Shikamaru turned and followed her.

As they walked up the stairs to the councils meeting room, Shikamaru couldn't help but wonder what this was about. He knew that after his father's death he would mean becoming the head of his clan. He also knew that after suffering such heavy losses, becoming a Jonin would be unavoidable. Just as he was thinking about what a drag his life was about to become, he realised they had stopped walking. They had reached their destination. He felt the Hokages eyes on him as he reached up to knock on the door, he hesitated for a second, but then knocked. "Whatever they want, I'll just have to deal with it, no matter how troublesome" he thought to himself.

They went inside and were greeted by the two Councillors of Konoha, Homura Mitokado and Koharu Utatane. "Shikamaru, thank you for seeing us, let's get straight down to business" said Homura as he gestured to one of the lounges. Shikamaru sat with Tsunade, as the councillors took their seat adjacently. "As you are aware Shikamaru, now that Shikaku has died, you will take over his place as the leader of the Nara Clan." Koharu looked from him to Tsunade as she continued, "I'm not sure how much Lady Tsunade has told you, so I will cover it all for you now. First of all, it is simply unacceptable that you remain a Chunin. You have remarkable skill, and to be perfectly honest with you, Konoha needs all of the Jonin we can get. So we hereby promote you to the level of Jonin. We had considered allowing you to also take over your father's position as Jonin Commander, but we feel that with the other issues that need dealing with, it may be too much for you to handle." She looked from Shikamaru to Tsunade, as if willing them to dispute. However, as they both continued to just sit and listen, Homura carried on.

"Shikamaru, as you are well aware, you are now the head of your clan. And that requires a lot of different things from you. However, the first, and most important of these, is of a very personal nature. To remain as head of your clan, you need to be married. You need to be in a position to produce an heir, in case something was to happen to you." Homura paused, and allowed Tsunade to carry on.

"The councillors think it is best if we were to try and find someone for you to marry, from another village. If we are successful in this, it will greatly strengthen the bond between villages." She stopped and looked at Shikamaru, waiting for a response. He looked at her, trying to take it all in. "OK," he said as he continued to try and imagine what they could possibly say next, "I'm supposing you'll look for a village that we already have strong ties with. And you will be looking for a strong konoichi? I'll get onto it straight away" He was rudely cut off by Koharu, who held up her hand to stop him. "Shikamaru, we simply can't wait. We have taken the liberty of already choosing your bride. We trust that you will be satisfied with our choice. Send her in."


	2. Chapter 2

***Sorry about the lag on this chapter guys! I have a 9 week old baby, and today he just didn't want to sleep away from me! Thanks for the reviews, I'm not super happy with this chapter, but hopefully you guys will enjoy it! Thanks for the reviews! xx

Shikamaru looked around as the door opened and a girl around his own age walked in. She had blonde hair, tied into four piggy tails and was wearing a black kimono with a large fan on her back. She looked at Shikamaru with sharp green eyes and a familiar smug grin. "Hi crybaby, how's it going?" Shikamaru stared back at her, not completely comprehending what he was seeing. "What's Temari got to do with this?" he said slowly as a paralysing realisation dawned on him. "Her?! She's the one I have to…" As Shikamaru tried to stutter out the situation at hand, Temari calmly interrupted him. "Marry. Yes. And you shouldn't look so upset by it. Let's face it; I'm way out of your league. You should be happy that they've set you up with somebody like me." She winked as she said this, closing the door behind her.

She walked over to where they sat, and sat down across from Shikamaru, in between the two councillors. "What happens now?" She asked, "How fast does all of this move along?" Just as Homura started to answer Temari, Shikamaru stood up. "_How could this possibly be happening_" he thought as he stood, trying to work out what to do next. He then turned, careful not to look Temari in the eyes, and left.

Tsunade called after him but it was no use. Shikamaru was leaving the Hokages building as fast as he could. _"What are they thinking? She's the most troublesome woman I've ever had the misfortune to deal with!" _He stormed out of the building towards the usual grassy cloud watching spot. He was so confused, so lost in thought that he didn't even hear the footsteps coming up behind him.

"It's rude to just leave a meeting with your village elders you know?" He turned his head to see Temari hurrying up behind him. "I know you're lazy, and kin of a wuss, but I didn't ever think you were rude." She caught him up and gave him one of her big cheeky grins. Shikamaru stopped and looked at her. "You seem pretty happy about everything, why?" he said as he studied her more closely. _"Wait, WHY was that? I've known her for years and she's never just done as she's been told. Especially not with something as serious as this."_

"Let's go sit Shikamaru, I'll explain everything." She smiled softly at him and grabbed his hand. He didn't try to resist, realising it would be futile and too much effort, he walked alongside her. While they walked, he started to realise that his hand fit hers perfectly. Hers was small and soft, fitting into his, larger and tough. He felt Temari looking at him and quickly stared off at the clouds. "Where are we going Temari? All this walking is such a drag." "We're here" she said as she dropped his hand. She had led him to a small stream amongst some trees. There was a small jetty with a tiny wooden boat next to it. She walked to the end, hiked up her kimono and sat, with long, toned legs dangling over the edge. Shikamaru walked to the end and sat down beside her, then looked up to the clouds.

"So, why are you so happy about all of this?" Shikamaru continued to stare at the clouds as he said this, he felt Temari look away from him. She lay back, also staring at the clouds. "Don't flatter yourself, I don't remember ever stating I was happy." She giggled and stretched out further, trying to get comfortable on the tiny jetty. "I'm the daughter of the Fourth Kazekage, Shikamaru. I've known from a very young age what would be expected of me. I'll admit to not being as respectful to my own villages elders when I found out, but then I thought about it properly. I suggest you do too." Shikamaru felt her squeeze his hand, and then he watched as she got up. He continued to watch her as she walked back towards the village wondering what she meant.

Shikamaru lay there all day, thinking about the pro's and cons of his situation. As an expert strategist he came up with hundreds of different scenarios, good, bad, happy, sad, but they all ended up the same. He and Temari. Married. Kids running around. He came up with no scenarios about him with anybody else. He realised that after all that thinking, he obviously wasn't as adverse to the village elders decision as he first thought. It wasn't his first choice. He'd always wanted an average life. A wife who wasn't too pretty, not too ugly. Temari was beautiful. He wanted an average career. He'd just been made a Jonin. He knew what he had to do next. He knew he had to go and talk to the one person who'd always had his back.

He got up and walked home as the sun started to set below the trees of the Hidden Leaf. Thinking the whole time about the unavoidable path his life was taking. He opened the door to his house and saw the exact person he wanted to speak with sitting at the dining room table. He shut the door behind him and got ready for one of the most important talks he'd ever have.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 - Unavoidable

_Sorry about the wait on this chapter guys! Jiraiya has had a cold, so he's been a bit of a handful. But I suppose if you're only ten weeks old you can get away with it? I'm not super happy with thus chapter, but I think I have to do a boring chapter to build up to the next one. Let me know in your reviews if you want lemons ok? This is my first fanfic, so I've not done anything like that before._

**Enjoy guys! **

Shikamaru walked in to the dining room and smiled. He could smell his mums cooking from outside the house, and it smelled amazing. However troublesome that woman was, it was made up for by her cooking.

Sitting at the dining room table, munching down a bag of chips and waiting for Yoshinos meal to be served, was his best friend Chouji. Chouji had been coming around a lot lately. Chouji was the kindest person Shikamaru had ever met, and he knew that Chouji was only coming around to check up on him and his mum, making sure they were ok after losing Shikaku. Although it wasn't necessary, he appreciated it.

He greeted his mother and sat opposite Chouji. He knew Chouji was here to find out how the morning meeting with the Hokage had gone. He could tell from Shikamarus expression that it wasn't what he had expected.

Shikamaru waited until Yoshino had served the food up before them and taken her seat. He then started to recount the events of the meeting. "…and so now I have to marry Temari. What a drag." Once he had finished he looked at Chouji, who looked pretty happy about it, and then to his mother, who looked as though she was deep in thought. She was the first to speak. "This is Temari of the Sand? The one from your chunin exams? I'm glad they haven't chosen somebody weak. You need a strong woman." Shikamaru just looked at her as he muttered "A troublesome woman more like." This earned him a slap on the back of the head as his mother cleared the table and headed back into the kitchen to make dessert.

"Shikamaru, that's great. She's the only girl I know who can put up with you." Chouji beamed at his lazy friend. "And it's not like you don't find her attractive." He added with a sly grin. "Seriously Shikamaru, what's the problem?" Chouji was looking at Shikamaru through narrowed eyes. Shikamaru looked out the window, thinking it over again. What was the problem? It's not like he hated the konoichi. And Chouji was right, he did find her attractive, not that he'd ever admit that to her. He was just about to respond to him when Yoshino came back into the room with dessert.

As Chouji tucked in, Yoshino looked at her son. He looked more and more like his father every day. She was proud of her son, and she knew that he would be able to do whatever was needed for his clan. "Shikamaru, I want you to invite Temari over for dinner tomorrow night. If she's going to be my daughter in-law, I would like to get to know her." "Mum, this is such a drag, why do you need to meet her? I haven't agreed to anything." He rolled his eyes and started to eat his dessert. "You will accept this Shikamaru, you're clan is relying on you. You need to think about what she must be going through too. She has to leave her village, and her family. She needs your support, not your lazy attitude." Shikamaru pretended to ignore this comment, but it actually hit home with him. He hadn't thought of Temari once. He had only thought of how this would affect him. She was all alone with her brothers, no family. How would she be feeling to be leaving them? Maybe this was what she wanted him to think about. He knew she would be too proud to share her feelings or to admit she was scared. He decided to talk to her about it after dinner tomorrow. He knew that was going to be troublesome.

Dessert was finished quietly, and Chouji left almost straight away. "Thank you very much for the food Mrs Nara, it was delicious as always." Yoshino gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek and went back into the kitchen. Shikamaru walked Chouji to the gate. "Let me know how dinner goes tomorrow Shikamaru. Good Luck." "Bye Chouji." Chouji walked back towards the village, pulling a bag of crisps out of his pocket. Shikamaru walked back into the house and said goodnight to his mum. He had a shower and got into bed. It was still early, but tomorrow was going to be troublesome. As he lay in bed waiting for sleep, he thought about how the next day was going to pan out. "How troublesome." He breathed out as he fell asleep.

**I keep forgetting disclaimers! Oh no! I don't own Naruto, if I did, there would be constant pairings XD**


	4. Chapter 4

Here you go guys! Thanks again for all the reviews! I haven't done a super good proof read of this, as its 10pm and I start Uni next week, so lots to do! Let me know if there is anything that needs changing.

Chapter 4

"SHIKAMARU! Don't you ever walk out on a meeting with me again!" Shikamaru ducked as an empty bottle of sake was thrown at his head. He went to see and apologise to the Hokage first thing in the morning. He already regretted it. The Hokage was in a horrible mood, and Shikamaru was copping the brunt of it. He waited for her to calm down and asked what the process was from now on. She sat down behind her desk, and Shizune handed her a stack of papers.

"First things first, you need to read these. They're a copy of the papers from Temaris file. The Kazekage and I agreed that it is important you know as much as you can about her, and the role she will play in your life, before you decide if you will accept this or not." She looked up at the young shinobi to see him staring out at the clouds again. "I don't need to tell you how private Temari is. Nothing from these files gets repeated."

"I understand Lady Tsunade." He stepped forward and took the papers from her hand.

"Bring them back to me as soon as you've read them. We will need an answer within three days. I trust you'll make the best decision." She smiled at him and he turned to leave. He walked out of the Hokages building and towards his usual cloud watching spot. On the way, he ran into Temari.

"Crybaby, you're up early. Off to cloud watch already?" She walked up to him, grinning and carrying some grocery bags. He looked at the bags quizzically. "I'm stocking up, I'll be in Konoha for a while." She was still smiling at him, "Sorry, but these bags are heavy, I guess I'll catch you round." She started walking leaving Shikamaru standing in the middle of the walkway. _That wasn't anywhere near awkward. Maybe tonight won't be so bad, _he thought to himself. _Oh shit! Tonight!_

"Hey, Temari, wait up!" he ran to catch up with her. "My mums insisting you come round for dinner tonight. She wants to meet her, oh, uhh…" he looked up at the clouds, not really knowing how to finish the sentence. "Future daughter in-law?" she flashed him a cheeky smile, and then turned around again, starting to walk back to where she was staying. "It's ok, Shikamaru. I know it's a lot to take in. I'll see you tonight. 6?" "Uh, yeh, 6. Sure. See you then." He watched her walk away, and raise a hand full of shopping bags as a goodbye gesture.

Sitting on his bed that afternoon, Shikamaru pulled out Temaris file. "I suppose I can't put this off any longer. What a drag." Shikamaru didn't quite understand why he was putting it off. It's not like he wasn't interested. Temari never spoke about her past, and he was too lazy to ask. But this felt like he was going behind her back. But, then again, could he really not read it? It was Lady Tsunade telling him to do it. And a shinobi never defies their villages Kage.

With his conscience a little bit more settled, he opened up the file. The first page was pretty standard. The first thing you could see was a standard shinobi identification photo. This looked fairly recent. Underneath was listed all of the general information on Temari, and her mission history started on the second page. After that had all of her academy grades listed. Shikamaru read through all of that, nothing really standing out to him. Most of it he had either guessed or Temari had told him anyway.

He then got to the part of her file detailing personal history. He stopped and looked at the clock, it was nearly 5pm. He had an hour. He figured that would be enough time to read the rest of the file and still have a shower before Temari arrived. He settled further back onto his bed and started reading. The information he got from the file was still fairly vague. Temaris mother had died when she was four, shortly after the difficult birth of Gaara. Temari grew up with her father, the Fourth Kazekage and Kankurou, while Gaara lived with their uncle. Temari was obviously her father's favourite, but was brought up being told that femininity was a weakness, as was emotion, especially love. "_That figures," _thought Shikamaru. _"No wonder she's not phased about this marriage, it's just another mission."_ He continued to read, she spent most of her time training, as the other children her age were intimidated by her lineage, and she had taken on the responsibility of Kankurou once her mother had died.

Shikamaru suddenly looked at the clock, and saw that forty five minutes had passed. He realised Temari would arrive any minute. "Shit" he jumped off the bed and grabbed his towel. He crossed the hall to the bathroom, and had the quickest shower he'd ever had. He got out, dried off, and then realised it. Shikamaru had left his clothes on the end of his bed. He tied his hair back up, and wrapped his towel around his waist. "What a drag" he sighed as he slowly opened the door of the bathroom. He peered out down the hall, towards the stairs, he could still hear his mum cooking in the kitchen. "I couldn't have been more than 5 minutes, she shouldn't be here yet." He said to himself as he pulled the door closed behind him. He quickly darted into his room and shut the door behind him. He glanced up at the clock, it was five to six. He let out a sigh of relief. He still had time. He turned towards his cupboard and dropped his towel. He took a few steps and then turned towards his bed.

"Wow Shikamaru! Do you greet all your dinner guests this way?" he turned to see a familiar blonde hair konoichi staring at him. She grinned at him broadly, not even trying to cover up the fact that she was looking at him, taking in every detail.


	5. Chapter 5

**Thanks for the reviews guys and sorry about the wait. Being a new mum is taxing! Thank you to the guest who reviewed for longer chapters! I've been keeping them shorter in fear of boring you guys, so I'll tray a longer one, just let me know what you think. **

Shikamaru turned slowly, willing his mind to be playing tricks on him. He shut his eyes tightly, and re-opened them again. Sure enough she was still there. He groaned inwardly and dived for his towel, wrapping it around his waist as quick as humanly possible, a blush creeping its way onto his cheeks.

Temari got up off the bed, and went to walk out the bedroom door. She walked straight up to Shikamaru and placed a hand softly onto his bare shoulder. She grinned at him, holding back a giggle. "I think I'll wait downstairs, maybe have a chat to your mum." She was half way out the door when she felt a hand on her forearm, gently holding her where she was. "Don't worry crybaby, I won't mention this to your mum." She continued out the door, leaving Shikamaru standing there, wondering what the night held with two troublesome would put him through that evening.

He walked back to his closet, grabbing out the first clothes he found. He sat on his bed, bracing himself for the evening ahead. And that's when he noticed it. Temaris file. Lying spread out on the end of his bed. Had she noticed it? How long had she been in his room for? Surely she'd noticed it. She was a skilled kunoichi, a jounin, she would have had to have noticed it. But then, why no reaction. Shikamaru knew how private she was, if she had known about it, she surely would have hit him, at the least. How was he going to spend the rest of his life with the woman? "What a drag" he whispered to himself as he gathered the file together and threw it on his desk. He walked out of his bedroom, and down the stairs, to the dinner he so desperately wanted to avoid.

"Shikamaru what took you so long? Temari has been waiting patiently for you for twenty minutes!" his mother yelled as he entered the kitchen. Temari was sitting at the breakfast bar, a glass of juice in her hand, and some chips in a bowl in front of her. Until Shikamaru entered the room, she had been talking to Yoshino, she now looked between Shikamaru and his mother, waiting for one of the "troublesome" moments she'd heard so much about. Shikamaru merely walked over the the counter to sit next to Temari, mumbling about him "not being the one to invite her." Earning him smack on the back of the head with a saucepan. "This is your future wife Shikamaru Nara! You will not be rude." Yoshino turned back to the stove and continued to cook. "Dinner is only a few minutes away. Shikamaru, set the table, Temari dear, take a seat." She glared at Shikamaru until he got up and smiled at Temari, gesturing toward the adjoining room.

Temari entered the dining room and immediately started helping Shikamaru with the table. "So, this is the life of the Head of the Nara clan? Setting tables and entertaining guests you didn't want to invite in the first place?" Temari looked at the young shinobi, who continued to set the table, pointedly avoiding eye contact. "You know I didn't mean it like that woman. This whole situation is just so troublesome." They finished setting the table, and Temari took a seat near one end. Shikamaru sat opposite her, leaving room for his mother at the end. Yoshino entered the room carrying a huge bowl of curry. She set it down in between them all on the table. "Temari its lovely to have you, it's been great cooking for three again." She smiled from Temari to Shikamaru. "Be a dear and get the rice would you Shikamaru?" She looked at her son as he silently got up and walked into the kitchen. She looked at Temari. "Is everything ok between you two? It seems a bit… awkward." Temari looked intently at her drink. "I think it's just a big adjustment. You spend your life thinking you'll get to pick your life partner, not have her thrown at you by your village elders. I'm not really the type he would normally pick."

Shikamaru stood around the corner listening to Temari talk. She sounded sad, almost guilty. It hurt him to hear her that way. He was used to her being so confident and proud, but she sounded utterly defeated. _"I suppose I haven't been super friendly about all of this,"_ he thought as he stood there quietly _"She has no choice either."_ And that's when Shikamaru decided that if they were being forced to marry, he would make sure she was at least happy.

He returned to his seat, and smiled at Temari, who regarded him suspiciously through narrowed eyes. _"Troublesome woman, why is she so suspicious of me?"_ he continued to eat, as topics changed. It was a nice meal. Not awkward, but kind of familiar. The ate, they laughed, they drank. After dinner, Yoshino went to make dessert, and Shikamaru decided to have a talk to Temari. He got up from the table and grabbed her hand. "Come with me, let's go outside." He led her out of the dining room and towards the front door.

Once they were outside, they sat on the lawn chairs, and stared at the sky. "Temari, I need to ask you something." He looked at her as she peacefully watched the stars. _"My go I hope this works."_ He thought as he got up off his chair.

**Sorry guys, setting up for the next chapter. Update won't be long **


	6. Chapter 6

**Well that was embarrassing, sorry for the mix up guys! And super huge thanks to Insanity-Fun for pointing out the stuff up!**

Shikamaru watched Temari as he got up off his chair. He grinned as her deep green eyes reflected the stars as she looked from the sky to him. She was regarding him with curiosity, no doubt wondering why the lazy ass was doing so much moving around. He stood in front of her, pulled out a small red velvet box. Temaris eyes opened wide as she realised what he was doing. She stood up and stepped closer to him, so that their faces were only an inch apart. She looked into his bored face, which was now covered by a nervous smile.

"I know that if I say no, then I'll have to marry someone even more troublesome than you," he paused and reached for her hand. "And no doubt you'll get stuck with someone you can't stand either. At least with this arrangement, we know we can do worse. We can be happy." He handed her the box and waited for her to open it. As she did, her eyes grew even wider, as she pulled out the most beautiful engagement ring she had ever seen. It was a huge rectangular shaped ruby, surrounded by tiny diamonds, on a thin gold band. She slid it on to her finger, admiring how it looked. She smiled, and Shikamaru took that to mean yes. "It was my mums. Dad gave it to me the night before the war. I think he knew it would be you. I think he always did."

Temari stood up straight and kissed Shikamaru. He was slightly taken aback, but returned the kiss with valour. Just as things we heating up, they heard a slight cough, as someone cleared their throat. They stopped and turned to see Yoshino standing on the patio looking at them. "Dessert is ready, if you still need it." She nodded curtly and then turned around, hoping neither of them saw her smiling. _"You were right Shiakaku."_ She thought as she walked into the lounge room. _"You always were."_

Shikamaru and Temari ate dessert in silence, and as soon as it was finished, they excused themselves. Yoshino smiled to herself as she watched them disappear up the stairs towards Shikamarus room. They hadn't even reached the door before they were already pulling at each other's clothes. Shikamaru fumbled with the door handle as Temari kissed his neck, already trying to run her hands up his shirt. He finally got the door open and they spilled into his room. He shut the door gently behind him as Temari came flying at him, kissing him passionately, giving him a taste of what was to come for the rest of his life. He smiled, picked her up, and carried her over to the bed, where she had been sitting only a few hours ago. He watched as she sat on the edge of the bed, undid her red obi and let her kimono fall away from her. As she sat there waiting, he undid he pants and kicked them to the floor as she ripped his shirt away from him.

He leant in to kiss her, but she pushed him back. She stood up and leant him against his desk. As she began to climb on top of him, something fell from the desk and hit the floor. Shikamaru ignored it, pulling her closer, but she glanced down to see what it was, but the room was too dark. She looked back at Shikamaru as he picked her up, positioned her where he wanted her, and pushed her against the wall next to them. He entered her, and listened to her as she tried to keep quiet. She grabbed at his back, scratching it as he pleasured her. They moved from the wall to the bed, as she assumed a position on top of him. This was what he wanted. Doing all the work was too troublesome. As she straddled him he ran his hands up and down her body and she reached forward, pulling the elastic out of his hair, letting it fall. "Temari..." "I know Nara" he flipped her slender frame so that he was once again on top. He lowered his body, so that it was pressing on hers, as they reached the end of their activity. He could hear her trying to stay quiet, so he slipped his mouth over hers, breathing in her screams of pleasure. Once he was sure she could stay quiet, he released her from his hold, and sank onto the bed beside her. He could see her smiling, hear her breathing rapidly. He put his arm around her, pulling her closer and dragged the blanket to cover them both. They lay there, together, for a while, before Shikamaru decided to go and find his clothes. He was just about to ask Temari if she wanted hers, when he realised she was asleep. "Troublesome woman" he sighed as he started to clear the evidence of their actions from his room. He walked downstairs to grab a drink of water, and saw his mum in the kitchen. He grabbed two bottles of water out of the fridge and watched his mum in silence.

"Is Temari staying the night Shikamaru? Give her one of your shirts to sleep in and I'll wash her clothes for her." Yoshino said as she looked her son up and down with narrowed eyes. "She said yes mum. She took the ring. I think she's actually happy to marry me. I think…" "We know she loves you Shikamaru. Anyone can see it. I can't believe you two can't. But, then I guess your father was the same. So clever in every way, but he couldn't see I loved him for a long time." She looked at her son, and then pulled him into a hug, a rarity in their family. "Don't hurt her Shiakamaru. She loves you, and women like her don't love easily." She released her son and sent him back to his room. He walked back, thinking about what his mum had said. _"Of course! The reason she wasn't unhappy with the elders' decision. She loves me, but couldn't tell me for risk of being hurt. Women are such a drag."_

He quietly opened the door to his bedroom, and climbed into bed next to Temari. She immediately rolled over to him. She groggily opened her eyes and gave him a huge smile, before falling straight back asleep and snoring quietly. He closed his eyes, and lay there, listening to her breathing, thinking about what would happen now.

The sun shone through the window as Yoshino brought Temaris freshly laundered clothes back into her sons' room. She smiled as she saw them laying there, Shikamaru with his arm around her. They looked so peaceful, and she was glad that even after the war, Shikamaru had something to look forward to, to make him happy. She tiptoed out of the room and walked down to the kitchen to start breakfast.

Temari heard the door close and opened her eyes. She looked around, and it took her a few seconds to realise where she was. She smiled to herself, remembering the night before and glanced down at her finger, looking at the ring. She smiled at how it looked on her slender finger. She couldn't wait to go and show the other girls. She gently slid out of bed, and grabbed the fresh clothes that Yoshino had cleaned for her. She out them on and glanced around her. She remembered something falling to the floor last night, and checked near the desk. She saw that it was a file and picked it up, placing it gently on top of the other papers. As she did so, she glanced down, and saw her name on the front of it. She glanced over at Shikamaru, making sure he was still asleep, and then opened it. She realised she was looking at her personnel file, and wondered why he had it. Never one for being subtle, she walked over to the bed, and smacked her new fiancé on the face with the file.

"What are you doing troublesome woman, go away" Shikamaru groaned. "What the hell is this Nara?" Temari yelled while shaking the file at him. Shikamaru looked up at her, and realising what she had found, jumped out of bed, trying to calm her down. "Oh, that's nothing, just a file on you. I didn't want it, but Lady Tsunade made me read it, such a drag." He looked at her expecting to see her red and angry. But all he saw was pain. She turned away from him striding towards the door; he grabbed her arm, turning her back to face him. And that's when he saw it. A single tear. Running from her beautiful dark green eyes and down her cheek. He reached up to her face, attempting to wipe the tear off her fair kin, but she turned and ran, unwilling to show him anymore weakness.

Shikamaru stood there, wondering what he did to upset her, what he could do to fix it, and hoping like hell his mother wouldn't find out.


	7. Chapter 7

Shikamaru stood in his room. Last night was amazing, and meant so much to him. What could have gotten Temari so upset? He knew she would be angry about the file, but he never though it would upset her, especially not enough to make her cry. He remembered how she had reprimanded him for crying, all those years ago. "_Now I'll have to apologise, what a drag."_ He thought to himself as he changed into his shinobi uniform. He wandered down stairs and spotted his mother in the kitchen. He walked over to her, hoping she hadn't seen Temari leaving. Thankfully, she hadn't. "Mum, Temari had to get some stuff organised, and I need to go see Lady Tsunade, so don't worry about breakfast OK?" without waiting for an answer, Shikamaru turned and walked out the door, he didn't want to stick around and be questioned by his scary mother.

Shikamaru had decided to see Tsunade as early as possible to tell her to go ahead with the organised marriage. After that, he was going to go ask Chouji how to fix his problem with Temari.

Entering the Hokages office, Shikamaru assumed his normal position for dealing with Tsunade. One hand in pocket, one resting behind his head on his neck, and staring at the clouds. Lady Tsunade carried on talking, explaining that they would try to include customs and traditions from the Leaf, the Sand and also from the Nara Clan. All Shikamaru could think about was the look on Temaris face that morning. He knew how strong she was, he'd never even seen her slightly sad, let alone crying. He never thought he'd be someone she wanted to run away from. Lost in thought, he didn't notice that the Hokage had asked him a question. He stood there with a blank look on his face, trying to think of an appropriate answer to a question he hadn't heard. After a minute or so, Lady Tsunade was starting to get frustrated, "Shikamaru! I asked if you would be able to have everything organised by Temaris birthday. It is a tradition in the land of wind for women to be married on their 21st birthday." She looked at him expectantly, he nodded slowly. "Yes my lady. That is enough time." "Then you're dismissed," she turned away from him, to look out the window, as he made his way to the door. "And Shikamaru, I suggest you utilize as much assistance as possible. August 23rd isn't far away."

Walking towards the BBQ restaurant where Shikamaru was certain he would find Chouji, he couldn't stop thinking about how to fix things with Temari. It's not like he could forget what he had read; simply destroying the file wouldn't do anything. He could ask Ino for help, but that would involve something extravagant and romantic, and he knew that wasn't Temaris style.

He walked into the restaurant and spotted Chouji almost immediately. His friend was sitting at a table near the window, chowing down on all manner of meats. He looked up as Shikamaru approached and gave him one of his signature huge smiles. "Hey Shikamaru," Chouji managed to say through mouthfuls of meat. "You look troubled, what's wrong?" Shikamaru sat across from Chouji, "What a drag. I've upset Temari, and I don't know how to make it right." He gazed out of the window, preparing himself for the next part of the conversation. When Chouji just continued to eat and look at him expectantly, Shikamaru recounted the events of the night before. He started with reading the file, proposing, sleeping with her and finished by explaining the way that she had looked at him earlier that morning. Chouji considered this information, whilst thoughtfully chewing on a piece of meat. "OK, first things first, I'm going to need to high five you for tapping that, and secondly, she feels like you betrayed her trust. She's immensely proud and probably thinks you're going to judge her after reading about her past." Shikamaru continued to stare out the window. _"Troublesome woman. How could she think that?"_ "Shikamaru, if I were you, I'd apologise sooner rather than later OK?" Chouji looked closely at his lazy friend. "It's beyond obvious to everyone you guys were made for each other."

Shikamaru sat with his friend for another half an hour, silently watching him while he ate. He really was lucky to have him. He got up from the table, ready to go and find Temari. "Chouji, keep the 23rd of August free OK? I need a best man." He smiled at Chouji, who nodded politely, and then turned out the door, wondering where Sand konoichi hung out in the Leaf.

Temari tried as hard as he could to not cry in front of him. She had run down the stairs and out into the yard. All she wanted to do was get away as fast as possible. To be alone. She leapt up into one of the trees jumped from tree to tree as fast as she could, still gripping the file against her. She had been travelling for about ten minutes when she finally stopped. Temari jumped down from the tree branches and settled herself at the base of the tree. She looked around, taking in her surroundings. She was surrounded by huge trees, with ferny undergrowth and bright blue skies above her. She thought about the night before, and smiled as she remembered what had happened. As much as she'd probably never admit it to Shikamaru, she loved the lazy shinobi. The way he looked at her, the way he understood her, hell, the way they understood each other. Growing up, she never thought that she would find someone she trusted like that.

She shook her head, ridding herself of all thought, and opened the file she had taken from Shikamaru. As she read through it she wondered what Shikamaru thought of her as he read it. Temari had always had a hard time making friends, both because her lineage and the fact that her brother was the feared Shukaku, and it was because of this that she behaved the way she did. She and Kankuro had both gotten sick of everyone being scared of them, so they banded together and gave everyone a reason to fear them. What would he think of her relationship with her Father? She was the favourite, and she knew how people tended to view her as a princess, both because of her title as Lady Temari, and the way her Father doted on her. Just as she was getting upset again, an ANBU ninja appeared. "Lady Temari! Your presence is requested by our Lord Hokage. Please see to her immediately." The ninja appeared in a puff of smoke. Temari gathered the file together and leapt back into the trees, thinking that it was about time she found Shikamaru. _"After I see Lady Tsunade I'll go find the lazy ass. I suppose I should at least ask him why he had my file before I smack him again."_ Temari took the most direct route possible, leading her away from the Nara household, and straight through town. After a few minutes of travelling, Temari found herself at the Hokages office doors.

She was led in by Sakura, who kept glancing at Temaris hand. As Sakura turned to leave, she put her hand on Temaris shoulder, leaning in and whispering "That ring looks beautiful on you!" before discreetly leaving the office. Temari was left alone with Lady Tsunade, who was looking out her office window. "I spoke to Shikamaru this morning. He said you and he are both happy with this arrangement. As I am sure you're aware, you will need to be married on your 21st birthday?" With this the blonde Hokage turned to face Temari, taking a seat at her desk. "This is going to require a lot of work, organising a wedding in a few weeks. I suggest you involve Shikamarus mother as she knows what is required for a traditional Nara wedding, as well as for a Leaf wedding. Do you have the information needed for a traditional Sand wedding?" "Yes Lady Tsunade. Father used to make us attend wedding of important people all the time." Lady Tsunade continued, "Alright, then its finalised. August 23rd. I am taking you and Shikamaru off active mission duty. Your only task now is to get this wedding organised." "Thank you Lady Hokage." And with that, Temari bowed slightly, turned and left. "Oh, and Temari? I gave that file to Shikamaru, I thought it would be beneficial for him to understand you." Temari sighed heavily, realising she owed Shikamaru an apology.

Waiting for her outside the door was a pink haired medical ninja with a gleam in her eye making the blonde kunoichi feel uncomfortable.

Ten minutes later, Sakura and Temari sat at a table in a dango shop, discussing what needed to be done for the wedding. Temari wasn't really listening. She was thinking about the pineapple haired ninja she had yelled at earlier that morning. "So I know this gorgeous little dress place, I'm sure they would be able to whip up a dress for you. And you'll need to work out bridesmaids, and get a colour scheme sorted, and a cake, and some flowers. We'll get Ino to do the flowers. Oh and – ""Sakura! Calm down. I need to have a talk to Shikamarus mum; we are combining traditions for the wedding. I'll let you know if I need help OK?" As she said this, she realised how disheartened her friend looked. "But, I guess you could tell Ino that whatever we do for flowers, we will definitely go to her shop?" Sakura smiled, "I'll go tell her now. This is so exciting!" She took off out the door, leaving Temari sitting alone by the window. She closed her eyes, relaxed back into the chair, and took a deep breathe. She felt someone standing by her, and was just about to tell them to go away, when she was beaten to it. "Come for a walk, troublesome woman. We need to talk." Temari looked up at him, rolled her eyes and got up from her table. She walked out of the dango shop, closely followed by Shikamaru.


End file.
